Dream Team documentary captures greatness

In a year where one of the biggest blockbusters is a superhero ensemble, it’s only fitting the summer of 2012 also brings us the 20th anniversary of basketball’s equivalent of the Avengers.

Better known as the Dream Team, the 1992 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team was composed of NBA players for the first time after an embarrassing bronze medal at the 1988 games.

And so did the team led by Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird avenge that setback, routing opponents by an average of nearly 44 points en route to the gold while captivating a world-wide audience.

NBA TV’s excellent documentary “The Dream Team,” broadcast for the first time on Wednesday, captured not only its sheer greatness, but the humanity behind such an outsized collection of personalities.

(For those who missed out, set your DVR for the next broadcast on Friday at 9:30 p.m.)

Among the many highlights:

Michael Jordan’s initial reluctance to join the team;

Magic Johnson’s unwillingness to cede alpha male status to his Air apparent;

John Stockton’s inability to be recognized, despite trying, during a stroll through Barcelona;

And of course, any number of wonderful quotes from Sir Charles Barkley. (My personal favorites: Comparing the team’s Monte Carlo training camp to spring break in the ghetto, and warning viewers never to drink beer with Larry Bird. “I had a headache for two days,” he said.)

A constant theme throughout the documentary was how we’d never seen any team like it, and likely never will again.

Of courses, “never” is a long time. But it’s still an interesting possibility to ponder – will there ever be a squad better than the Dream Team? Before we do that, we first have to explore just what it was that made the Dream Team so dreamy.

SUBSTANCE

All 11 professional members, as well as head coach Chuck Daly would reach the Hall of Fame.

Eight averaged at least 25 points per game once in their career. Of the three who didn’t, Johnson and Pippen were among the most versatile players in NBA history, and all Stockton did was lead the league in assists nine times and steals twice.

Bird, Jordan and Johnson combined to win every MVP from 1984 to 1992. They were among six players (including Karl Malone, Charles Barkley and David Robinson) who would win a total of 15 MVPs.

A different batch of six (Jordan, Bird, Johnson, Robinson, Clyde Drexler and Scottie Pippen) would combine to win 23 championships – 25 if you include Daly.

STYLE

Jordan, of course, could make a team worth watching all by himself. But rather than individual talent, the real reason behind the Dream Team’s success was its collective basketball IQ.

Johnson and Bird were two of the most creative passers ever. Stockton wasn’t as flashy but was ridiculously productive. Everyone else outside of Patrick Ewing was well above average for their particular positions.

That’s 10 out of 11 players who were ready and highly able to share the ball, as evidenced by the many beautiful passing sequences they strung together. Indeed, they were sometimes criticized for over-passing – a welcome “problem” considering how many offensive focal points were on the team.

STATURE

The Dream Team’s impact extended well off the court, much of it centered around (but not limited to) the Holy Trinity of Jordan, Johnson and Bird.

The rivalry between Bird’s Celtics and Johnson’s Lakers revitalized the NBA in the 1980s, helping the league rehabilitate its image as a playground for lazy athletes more interested in cocaine and hookers than playing hard every night.

They torch was then passed to Jordan, who pushed the NBA’s reach to every corner of the globe with his unmatched combination of charisma, flair and competitive savagery.

Mix in personalities like the wholesome Robinson and Sir Charles, whose nightly jaunts around Barcelona’s Las Ramblas district made him a local favorite, and it’s easy to see why the team was so wildly popular even in an era well before the Internet and social media.

All things considered, it’s nothing we’re likely to ever see again.

It is, however, fun to look back over the course of NBA history and wonder what might have been had pro players been allowed to compete from the start.

The 1964 team looks especially intriguing with a starting lineup of Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson – for my money, the best quartet in history considering all those players were in their prime.

Had we cared to send our best in 2004 instead of a glorified All-Star team, Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant and Jason Kidd would have been incredible.

And the upcoming team for the London Games might have been our best since the original Dream Team were it not for Dwight Howard’s back injury. Even without him, you could do a lot worse than LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul and an aging-but-game Bryant.

But from top to bottom, plus its historical significance, the original Dream Team will stand the test of time. Plus, it had the ultimate trump card in the person of one Michael Jeffrey Jordan.